Book
Teicholz N. The Big Fat Surprise: Why Butter, Meat and Cheese Belong in a Healthy Diet. New York: Simon & Schuster; 2014. 496 p.
Why we cite it
Documents how U.S. dietary guidelines vilifying saturated fat were shaped by strong personalities, institutional politics, and industry funding rather than rigorous evidence alone, tracing the history from Ancel Keys through the McGovern committee to the USDA guidelines. Relevant to this project because it illustrates how nutritional "common knowledge" can be built on weaker evidence than assumed — encouraging readers to question received wisdom about which foods are healthy rather than accepting dietary rules uncritically.
About the author
Nina Teicholz, PhD, is an investigative science journalist. Yale (biology), Stanford (BA American Studies), Oxford (MA Latin American Studies), University of Reading (PhD nutrition, 2024). Journalism career at NPR (on-air reporter, South America foreign correspondent), then freelance for New York Times, Washington Post, The New Yorker, The Economist, The Atlantic, WSJ, and Gourmet. Former Associate Director, Center for Globalization and Sustainable Development, Columbia University; adjunct professor, NYU Wagner School. Founded The Nutrition Coalition, a non-profit advocating evidence-based nutrition policy reform. Her 2003 Gourmet article on trans fats led to a nine-year investigation that became The Big Fat Surprise.
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